Poll: Buying games for teenagers

[Susan Arendt]

really, though the game won't kill them...

That's my thoughts on it. I'd never buy cigs or booze for kids because it causes them bodily harm. But this site reported the other day that studies show teenagers to be unaffected by video game violence, so I thought "meh - why not?"

Also, why the hell can't I edit the poll responses! I SCREWED UP!

Why not? Because it's not your job to raise those children. While it's highly unlikely that playing RDR will cause them harm in any way, that's not up to you. It's up to their parents and if, for some reason, they have decided that the kids shouldn't have the game, it's not your place to decide otherwise.

 

[Redlin5_v1legacy]

You miscreant, you! It wasn't the best thing to do but it won't hurt them. Had you bought them Grand theft Auto on the otherhand...

 

[Plurralbles]

I voted that RDR is a great game and well, yeah, people dserve to have the opportunity to play great games if tey have the cash.

 

[Yureina]

Too many poll options... x_x

 

[Necator15]

I am pretty sure that the ESRB rating is a strong suggestion that stores take as law, but aren't actually law. At least in most places. So you're under no legal obligation not to buy it for the kid. Ultimately, it's still the parent's choice if the kid plays the game. When they get home, their parents may take the game away. All that would happen is the kid will have wasted their money.

I don't see how it could be considered immoral.

Granted, I probably would've told the kid to fuck off. That's a waste of a good five minutes there that I could be doing something else.

 

[lSHaDoW-FoXl]

Awesome Story

Seriously, you sir are awesome. I recall back when I had no social life and no computer in sixth grade and the only thing I had to keep my sanity were games where I could blow peoples heads off.

Duke Nukem 64, Perfect Dark 64, Mortal Kombat trilogies and Goldeneye. Each and every one of these games relieved my stress in quite a difficult time in my life. Yeah, I had my share of Everyone games but you know what? I always found Mario games fucking frustrating. Buying those kids an awesome game was a kind deed.

 

[Ghostkai]

To be frank, actions like this only damage us as a group. If more minors play games that they aren't intended for, and are "affected" by them (lets not get into that, you know what I mean when some lil shits mother says that), it's gamers as a whole who get hurt, more specifically the industry gets another bad rap on Fox News.
I wouldn't do it in future.

 

[300lb. Samoan]

It's up to their parents and if, for some reason, they have decided that the kids shouldn't have the game, it's not your place to decide otherwise.

Wow - I got told off by Susan! AWESOME! Thanks for replying, now I have to respectfully disagree. While I'm obviously conflicted about the morality of the situation, I don't feel that I was taking responsibility for these kids developmentally. The die was cast when they first went to the store and asked for the game - my involvement (or anyone else's, potentially) is the result of their eager persistence, not an intentioned usurping of parental authority. Whether I bought the game for them or it was sold directly to them, the parental responsibility begins when the game enters the household. It will still be some mother or father's duty to monitor the children's video game usage and regulate it according to their judgment. Besides, for all we know the kids had just saved the money and left the house without thinking to bring a guardian along. Or maybe mom or dad weren't available to go for some reason and told the kids to buy the thing themselves.

 

[Marter]

You miscreant, you! It wasn't the best thing to do but it won't hurt them. Had you bought them Grand theft Auto on the otherhand...

What's wrong with buying kids GTA? I first played it when I was 12, but then again, I have the maturity and intelligence to discern a video game from reality.

OT: Nothing's wrong with what you did.

 

['Aredor]

Since you don't know them you have no idea how impressionable they are, whether they can cope with what they're seeing there or not and so on. I think it's ok if you buy those kinds of games for kids of whom you know that they are mature enough not to be influenced by them, but in this case, I wouldn't have done it.

 

[esperandote]

It was legally wrong but I say screw the law, kids just wanna have fun.

 

[Miumaru]

See, that kind of stuff gives parents excuses. And they should not get excuses, since otherwise WE suffer.

 

[-Samurai-]

If he was old enough to have a car window to lean out of, hes old enough to play whatever he wants.

Come on. If the guy can legally drive, why the hell can't he play a game? So, the government trusts him to operate a large, mostly metal object at high speeds, with the potential to kill himself and/or others, but he can't be trusted with some virtual violence?

In these circumstances, I'd say you did nothing wrong.

Off topic: Where in Ohio are you? I'm in Toledo.

 

[Sir_Tor]

Good thing here in Sweden, the guys at the store usually don't give a flying shit about age restrictions as far as I know. Atleast where I live
Is it really a law in some places? Wierd...

 

[feather240]

Since you don't know them you have no idea how impressionable they are, whether they can cope with what they're seeing there or not and so on. I think it's ok if you buy those kinds of games for kids of whom you know that they are mature enough not to be influenced by them, but in this case, I wouldn't have done it.

Those poor only children.

 

[Deleted]

I'm nuetral towards it.

Sure it's just a game and voilent games and so on don't harm teenagers that bad but on the other hand it's against the law to do it and it should be up to the parents to decide what games their children play, after all if they asked you then obviously their parents would not buy it for them because sometimes, games do give people ideas.....

A kid once asked me to do thise but I ran off with his money. his friends almost got me but I had $40 in the end.

OP you now know what to do next time.

Stealing is against the law for a reason.
What if someone robbed $40 off you?

So is buying a game underage.

I prevented one crime with my own He should know better than to give money to strangers.

 

[Dexiro]

It should be their parents choice. For all you know the kid could have had anger problems or something, there's probably a good reason his parents weren't buying it for him.

 

['Aredor]

Whether I bought the game for them or it was sold directly to them, the parental responsibility begins when the game enters the household. It will still be some mother or father's duty to monitor the children's video game usage and regulate it according to their judgment.

And how the hell are they supposed to do that if they can't control what games the kids have because some stranger gives them to them? You surely don't expect them to spend every waking minute their kids spend at home at their side, watching their every move? All of the parents of all of the guys, because otherwise they could just go over to a friend's house. You are aware that those kids are going to hide the game from there parents, aren't you?

Besides, with that line of thiking, wouldn't it also be okay to buy them pornography? Drugs? Guns? After all, it's the parents' responsibility if they let them use what a stranger bought them or not.

Besides, for all we know the kids had just saved the money and left the house without thinking to bring a guardian along. Or maybe mom or dad weren't available to go for some reason and told the kids to buy the thing themselves.

Or they may be old enough, just having forgotten their ID. Or they could be adults in the bodies of teenagers due to some freak accident. For all you know, they could be God almighty, and who are you to keep God from buying games if he wants to. Or you could just assume that they are just exactly what they appear to be and act accordingly.

 

[Ickorus]

Doesn't matter either way to me, i'd have said no to them though since I don't know their parents views on the matter.

Personally I was buying 18+ games since I was 15 and they never did me any harm.
[small]Maybe they harmed the 6 dead hookers in my closet but I only did that to get my money back.[/small]